There is a need in industry to provide economic and effective weatherproof, leakproof and soundproof barriers between closures and frames therefor, e.g. doors and door frames.
The presently available methods of providing such a barrier are:
1. Compressible seals applied to the frame with adhesives. This barrier cannot be adjusted after it is applied and the bond deteriorates with time and use as well as by weathering action on the adhesive.
2. Seals housed in separate metal retainers, and applied to the frame with screws, either at the factory or in the field. Factory application necessitates costly and difficult field positioning to ensure proper surface contact with the closure, and field application requires skill and is costly as well as difficult.
3. Flexible sealing strip interlocked into the frame through slots pierced through the frame. These seals must be applied, with special tools, prior to the installation of the frame. Only in this manner can the contractor insure that the concrete grout does not plug up the slots in the frame. At this point the contractor must either paint around or over the applied gasketing, or remove the gasketing, paint the frame, and replace the seals. This is a very costly procedure.